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Charles Cross (Earth-1938)
Origin Charles Cross was born to a shopowner Anton and a teacher, Nikki Cross in Keystone, Missouri. As Jim Crow laws were still in play when Charles grew, he dealt with racism and segregation. Charles was naturally quite smart, reading every book he could get his hands. When Charles was twelve, he discovered a young injured owl on the ground. He managed to nurse the owl back to health. The owl, "Hooty" as Charles named him, was released back into the wild but, frequently returned to the Cross house. This incident made Charles discovered his passion: healing. When Charles was seventeen, he attended Howard Univerity and later, it's medical school. Charles focussed on cardiac surgery, for the most part. In order to pay for college, he took a job as an assistant at a local newspaper. Charles enjoyed his work there but, he still kept his eye on a doctorate. Charles graduated from medical school, becoming the first doctor in his family. Charles moved to Gotham City, believing he would find work find better work in the north than in his home city. Charles worked at Gotham for five years before he became a full-fledged surgeon. During this time, he met Myra Mathisen, a nurse that worked at the same hospital. The two developed a crush on each other but, both were too shy to initiate a relationship. Charles's life would be changed forever the day Edward Skeevers got wheeled in the hospital. Skeevers was a career criminal and worked closely with the Maroni crime family. Skeevers had agreed to testify against Sal "Killer" Maroni, the heir to the Maroni family. However, the info got out and Skeevers was stabbed in the chest while in jail. Cross was the emergency surgeon on the duty and given the task of saving Skeevers. A Maroni hitman was waiting. A grenade was thrown into the operation room. Before Charles even noticed, the grenade went off, killing the patient and blinding Charles for life. The Midnight Hour Charles knew his medical career was over and it devasted him. All his work seemed to be for nothing now. Depressed, Charles returned to Keystone to stay with his family. One night, Charles heard a scathing at his window. Confused, Charles opened the door, only for a bird to hit him in the face. Trying to asset the damage, Charles took the bandages off his eyes. To his shock, Charles found that he could see. Elated, Charles turned on the light, only to discover his eyes only worked in absolute darkness. However, the incident sparked something in Charles. He was meant to help people and if he couldn't do that as a doctor, he would find another way. Charles returned to Gotham with a new purpose. He found Myra and asked for her help. She agreed. With her help, Charles made a costume and created what he called "blackout bombs", that caused smoke that mirrored darkness. Charles also trained in martial arts. When he felt he was ready, Charles got to work. Using his smarts, powers and blackout bombs, Charles attacked various Maroni businesses. This greatly hurt the Maroni crime family and they wouldn't recover from it until a decade later. With his first mission complete, Charles continued with his superhero career. While Charles began to write articles under a pseudonym with Myra's help, Charles would go out as a hero. He would dispute mob dealing and save people in need of dire medical attention. Due to him appearing exclusively at night and his skills in healing, the locals of Gotham began to know him as Doctor Midnight. The Good Doctor Charles's life in Gotham was good. He protected the streets as Doctor Midnight, he rallied against injustices in the Gotham Gazette as James McNider and setting up free clinics as Charles Cross. In pursuit of more funding for his clinic, Charles and Myra went to New York City. However, during his stay, a strange earthquake rocked New York. Right after that, seemly undead soldiers began attacking New York. After making sure Myra was somewhere safe, Charles immediately went into action. He fought the soldiers and cared for those wounded by them. When the attack ended, Charles found himself teleported to a group of fellow superheroes. The group, who all helped stop the attack or save civilians, agreed to form a team to protect the world from those who would harm. Charles had become part of the Justice Society. Charles greatly enjoyed his time with the team, even recruiting two other heroes, Starman and Phantom Lady. However, the worst threat the Earth had ever known was coming and it would prove to the end for Doctor Midnight. Night's End In 1979, Charles and Myra married in a wedding attended by all of the Justice Society. After a nice honeymoon in Jamicia, the couple returned to the states. However, their happiness would be short-lived. Just a year later, alien forces began to invade Earth. The JSA was on the frontline and Charles was no exception. When the World Army was formed, Charles became one of the top doctors, teaching medics about techniques he had created while tending to victims of crimes. Charles became an extremely respected doctor, saving many lives with his quick wits and incredible skill in surgery. In 1981, the final battle for Earth began in New York. Charles fought alongside his fellow JSA members bravely. He even went to the ship that held a bomb that could destroy all life on Earth. During the intense battle on the ship, Starman got knocked out. As Charles was helping his friend, the bomb was being turned on. Charles saw that I thought about his loving parents back in Keystone, his beloved Myra in Gotham, his brave friends who were fighting for their lives and every innocent life on the planet. As a doctor, he made an oath to protect life. Although it pained him greatly, Charles knew what he had to it. Taking Starman's Cosmic Staff, Charles battled his way to the bomb. When he got there, Charles blasted the device that would set off the bomb. When Starman came to it, he saw what Charles was trying to do. Starman tried to Charles to stop but, Charles just gave his friend a sad smile. Then, the device exploded and Doctor Midnight died due to sharpenal piercing his heart. Legacy Doctor Midnight's sacrifice made it possible to for the rest of the Justice Society to disarm the bomb and save the world. Doctor Midnight's funeral was attended by every living member of the Justice Society and many other heroes and world leaders. Dr.Charles Cross's funeral was just attended by a few friends, his parents and his wife. He didn't leave Myra totally alone, however. Two weeks after Charles' death, Myra discovered she was pregnant. Charles's legacy didn't end there. He once saved a young blind girl in Gotham. That girl, Beth Chapel, never forget his bravery, especially after she became blind herself. He inspired her to be a doctor and when she encountered injustice, to become the new Doctor Midnight. She fights with honor and saves the innocent. Charles's son, Pieter also grew up with a desire to help people. Pieter is currently learning both medience and how to be a hero from Beth. Charles countries to make the world a better place, even in death. Powers & Abilities Charles was a metahuman with the power of infrared vision. While Charles was blind normally, he could see perfectly in darkness. Charles was also an extremely skilled physician and surgeon. In addition to this, Charles was skilled in making gadgets like his blackout bombs, martial arts, and gymnastics. Trivia -Charles Cross was born on April 25, 1945. -Charles became Doctor Midnight in 1972. -Charles loved owls and even considered "Owlman" as his codename before he heard of people using "Doctor Midnight" to refer to him. -Charles briefly took over as Starman for a month after Ted Knight, the real Starman, was badly injured. Ted showed Charles how to use the Cosmic Staff. -Charles's pen name was based off James McCune Smith, the first African-American to earn an MD and practice in the Untied States, and Charles's own codename.Category:Created by MaysileeAurlis Category:Earth-1939 Category:Earth-1939 Characters Category:Earth-1938 Category:Earth-1938 Characters Category:Justice Society (Earth-1938) Category:Heroes Category:Gotham City Residents (Earth-1938) Category:Expert Combatant Category:Gymnastics Category:Metahumans of Earth-1938